Management Associate Partnership (MAP)
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 Management Associate Partnership (MAP)

Overview

The Management Associate Partnership (MAP) will adopt a targeted approach to support high-growth Singapore SME in attracting and training fresh graduate talents as Management Associates with clear intention to groom the capable ones for future leadership roles. The partnership will ensure a strong pipeline of talent for SMEs over the next 5 years. SPRING will work with the Universities to provide career guidance towards SME opportunities and raise SME Partners’ employer profile.

The MAP supports SME Partners in the following 3 areas :

I. Training and developing a pipeline of graduate talents

SME Partners need to craft training and development plans for the Management Associate (MA) focusing on 1 or 2 Core Competencies over a period of 12 to 18 months. This will come in the form of on-the-job internal training, professional training courses and overseas postings or assignments.

II. Strengthening of talent management capabilities

SME partners will also have to demonstrate commitment in improving their HR capabilities. SME Partners must enrol in the consultancy support for at least 3 modules of the HR Capability Package within one year of coming on board MAP.

SME Partners will need to attend a Talent Management and Coaching Workshop involving the CEO/MD (half day) and HR & Supervisors (two days). Both activities will be supported by SPRING.

III. Profiling and branding of SME Partners as Employers of Choice

Under the Careers@Enterprise branding, SME partners will be profiled as Employers of Choice. Events supporting the branding initiative will include career fairs, career talks, networking sessions, business case competitions as well as organised company visits by faculty and students.

SME Partners will also be able to upload their profiles and approved MA positions at the Careers@Enterprise job portal launched by SPRING. Universities will assist in promoting the portal to their undergraduates and alumnus.

Criteria

For SMEs

You can apply for the Management Associate Partnership if your company meets these criteria :
  • An SME* with a minimum annual sales turnover of S$10 million
  • Demonstrate strong growth potential
  • Clearly articulate the training and development plan for each MA including the building of deep management, functional and technical capabilities aligned to the company’s growth plan
  • Commit to pay monthly gross salary of at least $2,500 per MA
  • Offer meaningful and substantive internal and external training opportunities with at least 1 rotation across business functions
  • Assign supervisor for each MA and commit at least 2 hours per month of mentoring time by senior management
  • Commit to participate in consultancy support for HR Capability Package and Talent Management and Coaching Workshop
* The SME criteria consists of the following :
  • At least 30% local (Singaporean or Singapore Permanent Resident) shareholdings
  • Company group annual sales turnover of not more than S$100 million OR Company group employment size of not more than 200 workers

For Graduates

You can apply to be a Management Associate (MA) if you :
  • are a citizen or permanent resident of Singapore;
  • are a graduate from one the 4 local Universities, NTU, NUS, SMU and UniSIM;
  • have not more than 3 years of accumulated full-time working experience

Grant Support

Approved SME Partners will recruit and employ MAs on full time employment terms subject to a minimum monthly gross salary of $2,500 per MA. SME Partners need to commit a minimum 12 months towards each MA's training and development plan for both component A and B.

Each SME partner will be able to recruit MAs up to a maximum of 10% of the company’s total full-time staff strength or up to a max of 10 MAs per calendar year, whichever is lower.

The MAP will provide funding in the following areas of graduate training and HR Capability Upgrading :

Supported Item

Eligible Cost

Grant Support

Talent Development Grant per MA related to core capability development. Supported for maximum period of 18 months.

A. Core Competencies-based internal on-the-job training & key project involvement. Company to commit minimum of 120 man-days of training for 1st 12 months.

B. Formal external training related to capability building
  • Participation in local professional courses
  • Participation in overseas attachments or business trips, conference and study missions (air fare and cost of living expenses will be supported)

-



Up to $15,000



Up to $10,500


Up to $10,500
Talent Management and Coaching Workshop and Advisory programme attended by company HR and senior management (one-time support per company for maximum of 2 attendees)

Up to $5,000 Up to $4,500
Up to $25,500

How to apply?

For SMEs

To apply as a SME Partner, please complete and submit the application form with relevant supporting documents in hard-copies to 1 Fusionopolis Walk, #01-02, South Tower, Solaris, Singapore 138628.

For Graduates

Management Associate positions are available for application on the Careers@Enterprise job portal.

Related Links & Resources

Download the FAQs on Management Associate Partnership (PDF format, 65kB).
Need Assistance

Contact EnterpriseOne

Hotline : (65) 6898 1800
Email : map@spring.gov.sg
What Our Participants Say
“In an MNC, you would already have a fixed set of procedures that you have to follow, but in an SME you get to be part of that process where you help to streamline the activities. I think there are some stigmas associated with SMEs. People will think there’s a lack of advancement, less prestige, things can only be done on a lower scale, maybe lower starting salary… A lot of my fears were dispelled. I’ve experienced it myself first-hand that there are opportunities here.”

Ms Kimberly Yap
Management Trainee
Health Management
International (HMI)




“SMEs are small, the hierarchy is flatter, and we have immediate access to our superiors and higher levels of management. You usually don’t have that in MNCs. In future, it may not be a family business anymore. The business has to evolve and be institutionalised by professional managers running the business. What I see is that these fresh graduates have good potential for middle management and then moving on to senior management with the right training, the right grooming.”

Mr Nick Lai Weixuan
Executive and management associate
Markono Print Media Pte Ltd
(Adapted from SME Magazine, Jan/Feb 2012)

Last Modified Date :15 May 2012